A Rose
by Nota Bene
Summary: i needed some happy Addek, and this is what came out. i forgot to write in my authors note, but the short song at the bottom is by dorothy parker


dislcamer: not mine

authors note: yup, i'm back again with another one shot. i had a little time before i had to get to school and this is what came out of it.

enjoy!!

A Rose

_"A relationship is like a rose, How long it lasts, no one knows; Love can erase an awful past, Love can be yours, you'll see at last; To feel that love, it makes you sigh, To have it leave, you'd rather die; You hope you've found that special rose, 'Cause you love and care for the one you chose."_

_Rob Cella_

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

The alarm trilled loudly but the sound went unnoticed by the two occupants of the room. One was fast asleep, spread out on the bed while the other quietly pulled on a pair of boots and, glancing back for only a quick second, left the trailer.

After another few minutes the alarm kept beeping, the sound eventually creeping through and waking up the resident of the bed.

Addison shot up and quickly slammed down on the clock, effectively stopping it from making noise. She glanced to the side of the bed, planning to wake up Derek, but he wasn't there. She looked around the trailer, scanning the room with her eyes, but he wasn't there.

Getting up out of bed, Addison made her way into the small kitchen hoping to grab a cup of coffee and hoping Derek had left her a note. He hadn't.

Than again, she hadn't expected him to. She considered it a miracle that he even showed up in the trailer at night, at least while she was there.

Sighing, she grabbed the cup of coffee and moved back into the bedroom. There was no time to muse over her crappy life. If she didn't get dressed and ready, she would be late for work.

Arriving at SGH was like every other morning. She showed up, stormed in, ignored the looks and points in her direction and kept going. No matter how bad things would get, if she was doing her job, and doing it right, Addison had a reason to hold her head high.

So what if people thought she was the wicked witch of the east. She was going to stay until things worked themselves out with Derek.

And speaking of…

Addison found him standing over by the nurses' station looking at a chart. She studied his face for a second. Lines of tension creased his forehead and addi knew that it wasn't because of work. Each and every one of those lines had her name written all over it. She wished he would just sign the divorce papers. Either that or start treating her like a wife deserved to be treated.

She headed over to him, leaning against the counter. Derek continued to stare down at the chart in his hands. Addison cleared her throat, trying to grab his attention.

He looked up. "hey."

"Hey yourself. What's going on?"

"Nothing really, it looks like things are going to be pretty boring today." He glanced over at the almost empty surgical board. Only four surgeries were scheduled today, none of them neurological. "What's going on with you?"

"nothing much, I was just, I was wondering where you were this morning."

Derek handed his chart back to the nurse sitting behind the desk, smiling.

"What? What are you smiling about?"

"Nothing addi. I just went out for a walk. I needed to clear my head, needed to think."

"Oh." Addison's face fell. Whenever Derek started thinking, something bad happened.

He laughed. She smiled weakly. "Don't look so worried Addison."

"I'm not. I'm just concerned."

"Why?"

"You were thinking. I was just worried that it might have hurt." She answered him playfully. He childishly stuck his tongue out at her.

"Contrary to popular belief, I do use my head." Addison raised an eyebrow at him. "Fine, maybe I don't." They both laughed. A beeper went off.

"It's me. I'll talk to you later." Derek gave her a light kiss on the cheek. Addison gave a little wave as he walked off. A sigh of relief escaped her lips. Maybe things were going to be alright between them.

She spoke too soon.

The next time Addison ran into Derek he was standing in the same spot as this morning chit-chatting with Meredith Grey. Addison stopped in her tracks and just watched them. They were standing less than a few inches apart, bodies leaned towards each other. They weren't laughing or smiling, but occasionally Derek's hand would find its way to Meredith's arm and caress it gently.

Addison felt her breath catch in her throat. She couldn't stand there and watch. She had thought things were going so well for them, but seeing Derek with Meredith was just too much. Her hopes had been set too high.

Addison turned sharply on her heel and walked as fast as she could without running away from them. Apparently she had been noticed because as she walked, she could hear Derek calling her name.

"Addison! Addison, please! Stop for a minute!"

In a few seconds he had caught up to her, grabbing her arm and spinning her around. "Addison!"

"What?!"

He let go of her once he was sure she wasn't going to run off again. "Addison, it's not what it looks like."

"It's not like I thought you were having sex with her Derek."

"I know that. But I know that you think something is still going on."

"Of course I think that. You act like it. You're punishing me Derek, and I thought I could handle it. But this is just too much. This I can't handle."

"Nothing is going on between us Addison. I promise you that."

"How can you promise when you know it's not true? I see the way you look at each other, the way you touch each other. Even a simple handshake turns into some romantic rendezvous for the two of you. You think I don't notice that? I do notice, everyone notices and I just can't do it. You don't love me anymore and I can't compete with her."

"But I do Addison! I do still love you. What do you want me to do? If you won't believe me, tell me what I should do to prove it to you. How can I prove I still love you?"

"Just sign the papers Derek."

"Addison…"

"Derek, I can't play this game anymore. It's either me or her. Everyone knows you want her, so let me go. Sign the papers."

"No."

"Excuse me?"

"I'm not signing the papers. Addison, you might not believe it right now, but I love you. I love you so much. I know I don't show it, but I really truly do. You're Addison, my addi. You're my wife and I love you. I'm not signing the papers. I need you."

"You don't need me Derek."

"Yes I do. I've needed you everyday since we've met. I need you because I love you. Papers aren't going to change that and I won't sign them. I won't end what we have together with a piece of paper. Love can't disappear like that."

"I can't keep doing this. I can't keep giving this everything I have. I can't give you my heart and get nothing in return."

It was silent for a minute as Derek and Addison stared at each other. Addison with defeat in her eyes, and Derek with a fire in his. He wouldn't give up. He slowly moved closer to her, and quietly the tears came, making their way down her face. They broke eye contact.

He was standing right in front of her. She could feel the heat radiating from his body, he was so close to her. She glanced up again. Blue met blue and resolve was melted.

She felt herself lean into him as Derek's arms embraced her gently.

His hands lightly rubbed up and down her back as he whispered quietly in her ear. "Once when I was young and true, someone left me sad- broke my brittle heart in two; and that was very bad. Love is for unlucky folk. Love is but a curse. Once there was a heart I broke; and that, I think is worse."

"Derek…"

"I love you Addison. I'm sorry I treated you like this. I never realized how bad I hurt you. I know now that I broke you, I broke your heart when I left and when you found out about Meredith. I never meant to punish you for so long and I wish I could take it all back. I wish we could start over."

The tears continued to silently trail down her cheek.

"I know you want me to sign the papers, but that would be the worst thing I could do. Addison, you are the one I want. Not Meredith and not anyone else. Just you. You're my Addi, my rose, and I choose you."

hope y'all liked it. i was in the mood for some happy addek.

please review, i really appreciate it. they're what keep me writing-knowing that people appreciate what i wrote and enjoy reading it, so let me know :)


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